In some ways, Israel is a military State because everyone (with some minor exception) is required to serve in the military. If everyone is a trained soldier, the only true civilians are the children ...
Actually not true. Most of the ultra orthodox are exempted from service and are a huge source of the support for continued military operations. Because they don’t have to actually put themselves at risk.
It’s been the primary source of netenyahu’s ability to stay in power.
That's the "minor" exception I mentioned. But, as you must be aware, there is also a strong political campaign in Israel to remove this exemption. This is also likely to be a major political issue in the upcoming election.
It’s been the primary source of netenyahu’s ability to stay in power.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cly580gkd9ro
https://www.npr.org/2026/05/12/g-s1-121631/israel-military-u...